Tim Sherwood wants Jack Grealish to concentrate on his performances for Aston Villa after the midfielder pledged his international future to England.

Solihull-born Grealish announced on Monday that he wanted to make himself available to the country of his birth instead of the Republic of Ireland, who he represented at youth level because he has Irish-born grandparents.

The 20-year-old had been at the centre of a battle between the two countries since the summer and his club manager Sherwood is pleased the matter has now finally been concluded.

But he wants to see the young player continue to improve in the Premier League, insisting if he does that then the England call-up will look after itself.

“It’s good news for England,” Sherwood told AVTV. “Obviously, hopefully Jack has cleared his mind now.

“We’re looking for some improved performances from him now on the pitch so those international managers are very excited and choose to pick him.

“He’s got a lot of competition there so he needs to make sure that he is playing well for Aston Villa – and we’re sure he will.

“He has loads of potential and that’s what it is at the moment. He needs to start fulfilling that potential. He needs to improve every season that goes by.

“That will mean he might get picked by England and becomes an international but I think this championship (Euro 2016) might be a little bit too soon for him.

“He’s got a long way to go. We know what talent Jack possesses.

“But he has to show it on a regular basis. Consistency is everything in this game.”

Grealish will not be selected for England’s upcoming Euro 2016 qualifiers against Estonia and Lithuania next month.

It is understood that the English FA expects his international clearance will not be granted for four to six weeks.

That means he will not be included in the squad for the next two qualifiers – which is named on Thursday – but he could feature in the friendlies against Spain and France in November.